Half to elliott l



(No Model.)

0. E. PARKER. PORTABLE AND ADJUSTABLE TRACK FOR MOVING SAF'ES. No. 469,591. Patented Feb.'23, 1892.

mw'mbo'z 7 MM! M UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

onAnLEs EDWARD PARKER, OF DULUTH, MINNESOTA, AssIeNoR or ONE- HALF TO ELLIOTT L. WHITTINGTON.

PORTABLE AND ADJUSTABLE TRACK FOR MOVING SAFES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 469,591, dated February 23, 1892.

Application filed September 29, 1891. Serial No. 407,188, (N d l To all whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, CHARLES EDWARD PARKER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Duluth, in the county of St. Louis and State of Minnesota, have invented new and useful Improvements in Portable and Adj ustable Tracks for Moving Safes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to portable and adjustable railroad rails or tracks for use in fatcilitating the moving of heavy safes.

The object of my invention is to provide a system of stronglyconstructed flanged or grooved rails that can be readily adjusted to any required width or gage and which may be lengthened by the addition of successive detachably-connected sections, as required.

A further object of the invention is to provide means for adjusting the rails vertically to form a bridge or platform along-which a safe can be moved at any necessary elevation.

The invention consists in the construction, relative arrangement, and combination of the adjustable railroad -rails and accompaniments, as hereinafter more fully set forth.

In the annexed drawings, illustrating the invention, Figure 1 is a partly-broken plan of a system of detachably connected and adj ustable railroad-rails constructed according to my invention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is a transverse section on the line 3 3, Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a plan of a set of rails-arranged to be adjusted vertically. Fig. 5 is a side elevation of a set of verticallyadjustable rails. Fig. 6 is an end elevation of the same. Figs. 7, S, and 9 are detail views of foot-pieoes for the supports of the elevated rails.

The rails 1 are constructed with lateral vertically-projecting guide-flanges 2, that serve to keep in place the rollers on which a safe is mounted. These flanges may, however, be omitted or cutaway for a portion of the length of a rail at one end to form a flat tongue 3, that is adapted to be received between the flanges of an adjacent rail when two or more sets of rails are connected to form a track of the desired length. Several lengths of rails can thus be connected by lapped ends, as shown in Fig. 2, for obtaining any length of track required. For the purpose of detachably and adjustably connecting the ends of the rails to obtain a track of proper length for the required purpose, the end of the rail that is to form the under side of the joint may be provided with a longitudinal slot 4,

as shown in Fig. 1, of any suitable shape to receive a binding-screw 5, Fig. 2, that impinges on the tongue 3and holds the rails together. Instead of binding-screws 5, bolts and nuts 6, Fig. 2, may be used. If it is not desired to provide for any slight adjustment of the rails endwise on each other, the slots l may be omitted and circular perforations 7, Fig. 4:, be provided for passage of the hind ing-screws or bolts.

The opposite rails in each section of track are adj ustably connected by means of ties 8, that are rigidly secured to one rail in any suitable manner and have an adjustable slotand-bolt connection with the opposite rail, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, or with another tie projecting from said opposite rail, as shown in Figs. 4 and 6. The tie 8, Figs. 1 .and 3, or either of the ties, Figs. e and'6, is provided with a longitudinal slot 9 to receive a bolt 10 on the opposite rail or interlocking tie, as the case may be, and by means of a nut or nuts 11 on this bolt the rails l in each section of track can be securely connected at any de- 8o sired gage or distance apart. The adjustable ties may be secured to the under sides of the rails by means of bolts 12 and nuts 13, Fig.

3, or in any other convenient manner.

In arranging these portable and adjustable rails for use in moving a safe along and over the same, each section of track is adjusted to the proper gage and a suflicient number of track-sections are connected to support the safe and have one or more sections in ad- Vance. After the safe has been moved along over the first two or three sections of track they can be taken up and adjusted in front, and so on. By suitable arrangement and management of the detachable and adjust able track-sections a heavy safe can be readily moved across a floor or pavement and up or down a stairway with comparative ease.

If it should be necessary to move a safe across a piece of soft ground or to or from a too wagon, the bridge or elevated platform of rails, Figs. 5 and 6, may be used to advantage. This bridge or platform is composed of detachable and adj ustably-connected rails of the same character and construction as already described, so that the structure can be readily made of any length and width desired. By referring to Figs. 5 and 6 it will be seen that the flanged rails 1 can be mounted standards 20, having transverse corrugations :21, Fig.5, andlongitudinalslots 22, Fig. 6. By

meansof bolts and nuts 23and the slots 19 and 2 2,"the rail-supporting legs 14: and transverse brace-bars 16 can be secured to the standards 20 many desired elevation, while the corrugatedsurfaces of the-bars 1'6 and standards .20

assist in securing a-firm and rigid connection.

'In raisinga safe to the top of this'platform or bridge or in lowering it therefrom a separate section of track-rai'ls-can be arranged against one end of the bridge or platform at any re-' quired angle and be used as an inclined plane in moving the safe, around which a rope is placed, as usual. To prevent the standards .oradjusta'ble legs from sinking in soft ground, theyare provided with detachable foot-pieces 24, the upper surfaces of which may have grooves 25, Fig. 7, or mortises 26, Fig. 9, to receive the lower ends of said standards or ad- I justable legs. The under sides of the footpieces :24: may have corrugations 27, Figs. 5 and 8, to prevent slip-ping. As shown in Fig. 5, the rails 1, that form the top of the-bridge or :platform, may be braced by truss-rods 28, arranged in any suitable manner.

It will be observed that by use of these portable and adjustable rails the heavy planks andblocking now ordinarily employed in-mov'ing heavy safes may be dispensed with, and that with tracks of the character herein described, made-of the bestand strongest materials,safes of the largest sizecan be moved about much more quickly and easily than by the usual means.

WVhat I claim as my invention is 1., A portable and adjustable track for use in moving safes, said track composed of rails that are adapted to be detachably connected at their ends and provided with adjustable ties whereby the gage of the track 'may be Varied, substantially as described.

2. A portable and adjustable track for use in moving safes, said track composed of grooved or flanged rails and adjustable crossties, substantially as'described.

3. A portable and adjustable track for use in moving safes, said track composed of flanged rails I-h-aving tongues atone end'and slots or perforations at the other end, bolts for detachably securing jtoge'ther the ends of adjacent rails, and adjust-able cross-tiesifor varying the gage of the track, substantially asdescri'bed.

4. A portable and adjustable track for 'use in moving safes, said track composed of rails that are adapted to be detacha bly connected at their ends, slotted cross-ties for varying the gage-of said 2track,and bolts for securingthe ties, substantially as described.

5. The comb-ination,with a'track composed of rails and adjustable cross-ties to vary the gage, of vertically-adjustable legs or standards for supporting said track, and adjustable cross bars or braces connecti-ng said legs, substantially as described.

0. The combination, with a track composed of rails 1 and adjustable cross-ties 8, ot' the CHARLES EDWARD PARKE R.

\Vitnesses:

G. CHAPMAN, N. A. GEARHART. 

